The family of a 38-year-old man who was fatally run over by an eThekwini Municipality water tanker in Adams Mission, KwaZulu-Natal, is demanding justice following the tragic incident on Monday.
Celani Zungu was allegedly attempting to stop the tanker from delivering water to a single household, arguing that the limited supply should be distributed among the wider community.
A culpable homicide case has been opened against the driver of the water tanker, while authorities investigate the circumstances surrounding the man's death.
Residents in the area say they have been without a reliable water supply for months after infrastructure was damaged during the devastating floods in 2022.
According to Zungu's family, tensions erupted when the tanker arrived to deliver water to one household. The community allegedly believed the vehicle had arrived to supply the entire area.
Sakhile Zungu said an argument broke out between residents and the driver, who allegedly used the tanker to push people away.
He claimed the driver reversed the vehicle before moving forward again, striking his brother.
Sakhile said Celani had rushed from home after hearing about the confrontation and was walking ahead of him when he was knocked down.
He further alleged that the tanker ran over Celani a second time while family and community members were attempting to pull him from underneath the vehicle.
eThekwini Mayor Cyril Xaba described the incident as a tragic accident, but said the municipality could not speculate on what happened while investigations were under way.
The matter has been handed over to law enforcement for further investigation.
Authorities are conducting both a criminal investigation and an internal municipal probe to establish the circumstances that led to the fatal incident.